Hello ostrich. Welcome to Canada. Are you new to gardenweb? Where did you come from and what zone was it?

My initial reaction to your front yard, is that the builder has planted some full sun plants when you face North, which is pretty much shade most of the time.

You'll find there's quite a few people here from Calgary so you'll be able to get lots of good advice.

I personally think hosta would have been a better choice than evergreens and grasses, particularly when the tree in the front will provide even deeper shade when it gets larger.

I think I'll wait to hear what zone you've just come from before my next comment, LOL !

Hi nutsaboutflowers,

Thank you! I actually came from Ohio, so it was zone 5b there! Quite a big difference from zone 3a... and I thought that it was tough to grow things there! LOL

Yes, I have the same suspicion too, that these "landscapers" just planted full-sun plants where I don't much sun in the front yard! I mean, seriously, aren't they supposed to know these things as landscapers!? Sigh... the only good thing is that the front of my house is pretty open without any neighbouring house blocking the sun from the sides, so I do still get some western and eastern sun too, just not right by the porch.

I thought of hostas too (and I love them) but I would like something evergreen that would have create a "backbone" for this area throughout the seasons, and then add some colourful perennials or shrubs around them.

The problem is that I had no say in the selection of these shrubs (sigh!) and I don't know enough about zone 3a gardening to tell them what to do anyway... so I would love to have some help here! :-)

Thanks again!

Hi again. The other comment I was going to make, especially if you were coming from Texas or something, was are you aware that unless you plant fairly large and tall evergreens, they'll be covered with snow most of the winter anyway, so looking ugly during the winter won't matter, LOL!

May I suggest you take a walk around the established part of your neighbourhood? You should get a very good idea of what type of evergreen can outlast the chinooks you'll get.

I'm sure somebody that lives in Calgary will pipe up here and help you out.

In the meantime, make sure you save space in your sunny back yard for the full sun plants the landscapers have put in.

About your last picture. I'm not good at identifying shrubs unless I have them in my own yard, but your "spirea" looks more like a willow to me from your picture. But, honestly, I really don't know. It certainly doesn't look like the spireas I have.

BTW Are you interested in planting tulips this fall?

Hello nutsaboutflowers,

You have a good point - "winter interest" may not be that relevant!!! LOL! I would love to hear from the other Calgarians about this!!! :-)

Yes, I should get around my neighbourhood to see what evergreens work well. I have to say though, that my area is quite new (only 10 years ago) so the landscaping is not very mature at all. I will keep my eyes open though.

My backyard will just be a large, south-facing, sun-drenched yard with just grass initially.... I will need to figure out what to do with the landscaping before I do anything to it. I think it's a good thing to live there first, let the soil settle, before I do something next year.

I don't think that I will be planting tulips this year as I will be exhausted from the move! LOL! However, I would love to do so in future.

Thanks again!

Hi & welcome! You might be surprised how much sun that bed gets in June at this latitude. I still would have gone with a bit shadier plants too though, those might get leggy. Bleeding hearts, hostas, peonies and coral bells are popular for part shade in zone 3. I'm not a huge expert on shrubs and I never know the latest things but hardy hydrangeas are popular. I also bought a weigela this year after seeing one at my friend's house at the north-west side of her house. It's on its 3rd year and looks nice.

I sort of agree with NAF about not worrying about winter interest. I know we get a better snow cover here in Manitoba than you will in Calgary but by December we can't see anything except white bumps anyway.

Thanks, northspruce!

OK, so I really should not worry too much about "winter interest" then! LOL!

I really love hostas, but would they not be too moisture loving for a dry, dry place like Calgary?

I am also wondering if I can get something that would tolerate part shade and something taller by that porch?

Now, I just noticed something else - the way that they planted the tree - isn't that strange how it's sort of buried by the sod? Should there not be a circular area without any grass around the trunk, where you just put down mulch in order to allow water to get down to the roots more easily? Hmm....

Thanks again, northspruce! Now, where are the Calgarians!? :-)

Calgarian here!

Yes, remove some of the sod near the tree. Otherwise someone's going to girdle the tree with a weed wacker.

Hostas do just fine here.

The last shrub is a willow. It should do fine where it is. I wouldn't keep that buffaloberry - booooring.

Hey, Shazam, thanks!!!

Is that really a buffaloberry? I have never seen one in my life! But when I Google it, it should get big, right? Why on earth would that plant it there??? So weird....

Then the other "mystery shrub" is really a willow? Doesn't that get big too?

I really don't understand what the "landscapers" were trying to do here.... sigh!

So in place of the buffaloberry, what would you plant there next to the porch, if I want something tallish (3-4 feet) and not too big that will not be dull and that will add some interesting colour to this part shade spot please?

Thanks again!

I have a Centre Glow Ninebark that's doing not too badly in part shade. It will probably get a bit larger than 3 - 4 feet, but it has nice dark leaves that stand out.

I think a nice plant for shade/part-shade that is *almost* evergreen is Bergenia. I'm looking at my hostas now all hail damaged and slug chewed and right beside them is a very nice looking bergenia - honestly it makes me want to get rid of all the hosta and ask the hybridizers to concentrate on bergenia leaf colours instead.

A nice Dogwood could be a good choice for a shrub. The coloured bark/stems would provide winter interest. Some can grow quite large but others stay smaller. I have a Prairie Fire Dogwood growing in the shade of an ash tree - nice light green leaf colour in summer.

Welcome to Canada, I'm sure you'll love Calgary. I lived there many years ago and it will always hold many happy memories for me.

Here is a link that might be useful: Prairie Fire Dogwood

I also like Philadelphus (mock orange) for a medium-sized part-shade shrub.

Yeah, _some_ ninebarks, hydrangeas - Quickfire, even an upright juniper.

Cedars don't do very well here. You might be okay though as you have some shelter from the west wind - our chinooks basically dry them to death.

Thanks so much, marciaz3, pudge, northspruce, and shazam_z3! You have given me some great ideas.

I am very intrigued by these lovely dogwoods with red branches (Prairie Fire, Arctic Fire etc.). I should go and look at one to see if they would work there.

I think that the biggest challenge is to fit something into that small and part-shade space there.

Now, since shazam mentioned these lovely hydrangea paniculatas, it got me thinking about them. Actually, in my last zone 5b garden, I had many hydrangea paniculatas - I had Quick Fire, Limelight, Pinky Winky, Pink Diamond etc. They were all lovely and wonderful! However, they were all too big for this space. I also had three Annabelles which would work well here but the blooming season is not as long and they droop terribly after a rainstorm. So, I did an online search just now and found that there were these new compact hydrangea paniculatas in the market:

- Little Lime - it's the dwarf version of the amazing Limelight
- Bombshell

They look sensational! They would be perfect for the spot by the porch in my new house. Also, these paniculatas would dry up during winter and these dried branches and flower heads actually would create winter interest with the snow.

I wonder if anyone has any experience with them in Canada? Are they available in this country at all?

Thanks again everyone!

I have never seen a hydrangea of any sort in Calgary, including extremely established specimens, that was higher than three feet. Not to say it doesn't happen, but our weather is pretty harsh on them.

I know for sure that Greengate had Little Lime and Bombshell.

WELCOME TO CANADA!
Calgary has those wicked Chinooks... with extremes highs and lows in winter.....a good thing to walk around in your neighborhood and see what does well. That tree looks like a Hubert Chokecherry, [a little damage on the trunk]....you can make jelly from, the birds love them too, usually they're not overly loaded. Grass is fine to the trunk if you like...nothing wrong, these trees grow well but sucker a bit around the trunk, just cut it back, leaf's are green first in spring and turn color.
It doesn't look bad with your evergreen and other shrubs I would let them be for a couple of years and see what turns out, some might not make it anyway....ask for new in spring if it happens...you might want to ask now if you have guarantee for one year. I remember of a buffalo berry I had, I liked the leafs and the berries, it didn't grow big. Looks like you have a nice place!

Thanks, konrad!!! Yes, you are so right, I should probably be a bit more patient and not throw out these shrubs... LOL! Maybe just change out the ones in the back since I love hydrangea paniculatas so much... (then I can plant these buffaloberries in the back yard!) I will think about that! Thanks.

Shazam, do you mean that even for those established Limelight and Quick Fire hydrangeas, they don't get to be over 3 feet in Calgary!? Wow... BTW, which are the best places to shop for shrubs and perennials in Calgary? I am always on the look out for places that have a good selection, knowledgeable staff and yet a very reasonable price! :-) Thanks again!

Sunnyside is 25% off right now, and it should go to 50% off either Sept 1 or Labour Day. In fact all the garden centres should be on sale either now or the start of Sept.

I do rather enjoy the smaller garden centres such as Plantation and Garden Retreat.

Canadian Tire, Rona, Home Depot and Real Canadian Superstore get a good selection of plant material in the spring that gets marked down rather quickly.

Oh yeah, I should mention that most of Calgary has an alkaline clay soil. So never add lime as an amendment. Our soil benefits greatly from compost and manures at even a 25% rate.

Welcome to Calgary!
The suggestion to walk around the neighbourhood is good.
Also you might want to join the Calgary Horticultural Society.
There are workshops, forums and garden tours etc. In September there is a plant swap.
You will learn about gardening with Chinooks and also meet new people.
Caroline

Thanks, Shazam - those are really good tips! I had no idea that Calgary has such alkaline clay soil. I will remember that. Guess what? I went to Canadian Tire today to get a sprinkler, and then I saw a couple of 2 gallon Hydrangea Bombshell on sale at 50% off!!! I just had to get them.... I know, I know, impulse buy is not good for me! LOL! However, I think that they will look great against the front porch.

Xaroline, thank you! That is a great idea - I should look up the Calgary Horticultural Society and learn about gardening in this area. Thanks!

Is September usually a bit late to plant shrubs and perennials in Calgary? Being the thifty person that I am (ha!) I used to buy these 50-75% off plants in September/October in Ohio, and sometimes I would even over-winter them in my insulated garage there, so that I can plant them in the ground in early spring without paying the early spring full price. Can I do the same in Calgary? Or will it be too cold in my insulated garage here to do so? If that is a bad idea, how about leaving them in the basement overwinter? Your advice will be very much appreciated! Thanks.

I don't know which area you are in, but my mother lives in the North West and she has a terrible time with rabbits in her garden. She has resorted to fencing off some areas and growing things that they won't eat. As others have mentioned, you also need to deal with some real temperature fluctuations as well. Don't be discouraged though, we were very impressed by the beautiful landscaping when we were there in July.

Your shrubs are still small, so if you find they aren't thriving in their present location, you can always move them somewhere else on your property. As to buying plants at the end of the season...sometimes you luck out and they survive. It's certainly worth a shot if you can get them dirt-cheap. I personally like to buy in the Spring or early Summer so they have a full growing season. I also like to buy the largest size possible for some plants and shrubs.

You can definitely plant in Sept and even Oct. I find they are actually great months to plant, as the plant isn't struggling with heat.

You can overwinter in the garage here, but I would really plant them instead.

Cal Hort is definitely very useful, I'm a member as well. You get a very good newsletter eight times a year, open garden tours, etc...

QR77, a local radio station, has a gardening show every Sunday at 9am. You can even listen to past episodes:

http://www.qr77.com/other/AudioVault.html

Calgary is much worse for gardening than other zone 3 areas (like say, Winnipeg) because Calgary summers are unpredictable and cool (due to elevation). It can frost and snow in any month of the year, and even in a normal year, July is the only frost-free month. In winter and spring, the chinooks can wreak havoc with fluctuating temperatures that shock dormant plants. So you'll need a lot of mulch in winter to protect against those fluctuations. If you plan to grow any frost-tender crops, you will need row covers and/or a greenhouse.

Yup. It's snowed every month here. Also, due to our elevation, we have fairly cool nights (it was 5C a few nights ago...), and thusly our heat unit accumulation number isn't very high.

On the other hand we don't get very many pests and our cool nights extend bloom life and quality.

Thanks, Donna, Shazam and Slimy_Okra!

I really don't do any crops (YET!) as I am still trying to learn about the perennials and flowering shrubs! :-)

Shazam, I probably will soon dig up those buffaloberries and plant the Bombshell hydrangeas there instead.

I am in the SW, which I hear is a bit better than the NW for planting, is that right???

SW is a bit better. You guys seem to get more hail though. SE gets the most stable weather, and they're much lower in elevation than the rest of the city. Downtown is considered zone 4 due to it being a heat island.

Aw shucks! I knew that I should have gone for an infill in the inner city, then I would be in a warmer zone... LOL!

Finally, we got some much needed rain today! Not enough though if you ask me....

You might want to get used,..it's either too dry or too wet here LOL.

konrad, you are so funny and accurate - it has been very wet over the last 24 hours! LOL! YAY! I didn't have to water my newly installed sod! LOL!

BTW, I finally got some answers from the landscaper as to what shrubs they planted in my front yard:

1. Native Saskatoon - these will grow too big for that area, right!? Also, I suspect that they would not do well in that partly shaded spot.

2. Dwarf Garland spiraea - those willowy looking things are these spiraea!

3. Forester Reed grass

4. Blue Chip Juniper

5. Savin Juniper

I think that it will be OK once I have got those Saskatoons out of that spot. What do you think?